TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis issued updates on Hurricane Ian after surveying various impacted areas across the state with Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie and Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell. Governor DeSantis traveled to Fort Myers, Seminole County, and St. Augustine to survey impacted areas and meet with storm victims.

There are currently 42,000 linemen responding to the more than 1.6 million reported power outages. They have already restored power to more than 1.1 million accounts in Southwest Florida.

The state website for reporting missing persons related to Hurricane Ian is http://missing.fl.gov. If you need to report a missing person, fill out the form on behalf of “Someone Else.” You can also fill out the form on behalf of yourself if communications are limited. Safe and found persons can be reported safe at http://safe.fl.gov.

First Lady Casey DeSantis also announced that the first awards from the Florida Disaster Fund. To read more info, click here. The Florida Disaster Fund is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to provide financial assistance to our communities as they respond to and recover from times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with public, private, and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities. To contribute, please visit www.FloridaDisasterFund.org or text DISASTER to 20222.

State preparation and response efforts include:

Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM)

o   Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority

o   Sarasota County Area Transit

o   Lynx (Central Florida/Orlando)

o   Gainesville Regional Transit System (reduced schedule)

Florida Department of Education (DOE)

Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)

Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR)